


Silent Night

by LAG0802



Category: NCIS
Genre: Christmas, Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-25
Updated: 2015-12-25
Packaged: 2018-05-09 07:08:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,945
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5530472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LAG0802/pseuds/LAG0802
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The team looks forward to spending Christmas together, will an accident turn the holidays from festive to tragic.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> Author Note: This is a story I started last December 2014, with start of new season and the some new material to focus this story was put on hold. I completed it in Oct 2015 and posted on FFN. 
> 
> As always I thank my wife for proof reading, but all errors are solely mine.
> 
> Disclaimer: I own no part of NCIS or these characters (except for few OC’s I throw in). The only reward I get is the joy of putting these characters in situations of my own creation. 
> 
> This is a TIBBS story, if not your thing, then please move-on.
> 
> I want to wish you a Merry Christmas and if you do not celebrate a Wonderful beautiful day. LAG

_Silent Night_

 

 

 

Chapter 1

 

Snow in the Washington, D.C. area at Christmas was not an annual occurrence but this year they had been blessed with 6 inches of freshly fallen snow.

 

Tony, Tim and Abby dressed for the cold, walked around the Christmas trees on the hillside, since it was Christmas Eve and most of the lots with precut trees had been picked over, Abby knew of this tree farm in Clifton, VA, that let you pick and cut down your own tree. The team had been working almost non-stop for the past two weeks, leaving them little time to make plans for the holiday. The case was closed with the last suspect brought in last evening. A group of sailors had decided to make extra money by smuggling drugs and stolen goods into the States. Tony had gone in undercover as a buyer and the sailors had been caught, the final member of the group was the wife of one of the men, her role was to set up the buyers, the team had picked her up at the airport as she was attempting to leave the country with a bag full of money.

 

Director Vance took the team off rotation and gave them the next four days free. With the short notice and no other plans, Tony talked Gibbs into having the team over to their home for Christmas. Abby, Tim and Ducky were coming, including Ellie Bishop and her husband Jake. Only Jimmy and Brenna, with baby Victoria would be absent as they had plans with Brenna’s family.

 

The team rallied and even though it was already Christmas Eve day, with everyone pitching-in to decorate and cook, they jumped into the holiday spirit. Tony, Abby and Tim had gone to pick up a tree. Tony wanted Gibbs to go with them, but Gibbs had decided to let the three go alone as he wanted to enjoy some quiet time in his basement and he needed the time to finish the special gift he was making for Tony.

 

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Clapping his hands and stomping his feet for warmth, Tony said, “Abby, you can’t keep vetoing every tree Tim and I pick, we have been out here over an hour already and it’s cold.”

 

“Oh, Tony boy, you can’t just grab any tree, it has to be the right one.”

 

“Abby, Tony is right, just pick one,” Tim added, feeling the cold creep in despite the thermal underwear he had on.

 

Stopping at a big fir tree, Abby stretched her arms out and closed her eyes, she worked her way around the tree; Tony and Tim just stood watching after years of not only working with, but being friends with the Goth forensic scientist they were used to her eccentric behavior. Making her way all around, she opened her eyes, jumped up and down and said, “OK Guys, this is it!”

 

Tony and Tim looked at the tree, both men were about 6’2” and the selected tree towered over their heads, glancing at each other and shaking their heads, Tim gave Abby the bad news. “Am, umm Abby, you realize this tree is about 9 feet tall.”

 

“Oh, but Tim this is it, its perfect.”

 

“Abby, it’s too big, it won’t fit on the roof of the car and it will never fit in the house, this thing is huge,” Tony added in support of Tim with exasperation slipping into his voice.

 

“But, maybe…” Abby started, fixated on her choice.

 

“No, Abby, pick another one before we all freeze to death out here,” Tony, putting his foot-down, took control. This was no longer fun as his toes and fingers started to go numb; he moved the group to a more appropriately sized stand of trees.

 

While not happy that they did not go along with her first choice, Abby conceded and made her second selection, a beautiful Fraser fir, about 6 ½ feet tall, with a nice tapered shape and full all the way around.

 

Murmuring, “Finally,” under his breath, Tony dropped to his knees and with the saw provided by the farm he cut the tree free.

 

Dragging the tree back to the car, Tony wrapped it in a blanket so that it would not scratch the roof and the owner of the tree farm assisted in securing it, ensuring it would survive the trip home and as they were his last customers, he was anxious to see them on their way and go home to his family.

 

With the tree secure, the trio headed out, Tony driving his gently used new car. It had taken a while to replace the Cadillac that had been totaled. The white Hyundai Sonata was not the typical car he had owned in the past but with his bad luck; the Vette stolen and totaled, the Mustang blown up and the Caddy also totaled, this was practical and affordable. His insurance was almost as much as the car payment. The all wheel drive was an added bonus driving in the snow and the previous owner an avid biker had given him a roof rack. Tony was looking forward to using it in the spring. Gibbs had an old ten-speed that for years he moved from room to room. This Christmas Tony bought them both new bikes, he had them hidden in the infrequently used garage, since running was getting too hard on well worn knees, biking would be a great substitute.

 

Tony maneuvered the car on the small, snow covered country roads. While not far from D.C. this area had remained underdeveloped. Tony checked the time; it was about 2:15pm. They would be back to Alexandria by about 3:00 or 3:15 even with the snow. Taking a curve in the road, a large buck chose this moment to leap out from the side of the road. With no time to react, Tony slammed on the brakes, but the impact could not be avoided, on hitting the deer the front airbags popped, hitting Tony and Abby, who was riding shotgun, in the face with force, no longer in control or able to see, Tony tried to keep the car on the road, but the car skid on the snow covered road and continued under its own momentum, sliding off the shoulder and plunging down the embankment. They came to an abrupt stop when the driver’s side slammed into a tree.

 

The impact knocked the trio senseless. Tim in the back was the first to recover as the cold air and snow from the shattered driver side windows replaced the warm air of the previously heated car. Once he was able to calm his racing heart and breathe again, he did not feel any major injuries, but he knew he would be sore and have some bruising to show for the experience.

 

Abby in the front seat let out a loud moan, cupping her nose in her hands, she called out, “Tony, Tim, you OK, what the heck happened?”

 

“Abby,” Tim spoke as leaned forward between the front seats, “Abby you OK?”

 

“I think so Tim,” she responded in a nasally voice, pulling her hands away from her face and rubbing her shoulder. “Boy that’s going to hurt, damn seat belt dug into my shoulder, and that airbag packs a wallop, at least there’s no blood, you and Tony Ok?”

 

“I’m Ok,” Tim said as he reached over to check on Tony, his concern growing, as Tony had yet to respond. While it was snowing pretty heavy out, it was light enough for Tim to see the blood on the side of Tony’s head, he had hit the side window and his nose was bloody from the airbag.

 

Touching his friends shoulder he shook it slightly, “Tony, can you hear me, are you OK? Tony!” the volume of his voice increasing.

 

Opening his eyes, “Don’t have to yell in my ear, Tim,” Tony tried not to move as he spoke, he did not want to admit to Tim and Abby how bad he was feeling, he had a throbbing headache, double vision and lunch was threatening to come up, after a number of concussions he didn’t need a doctor to tell him he had one.

 

From her seat, Abby looked over concerned, “Guys, I can’t get a signal on my phone.”

 

“It's ok Abby, we can check the other phones, just want to make sure Tony’s ok first,” concern seeping into his voice as he moved to get a better look at the older man, Tony had gone as white, as the snow outside and the way he was swallowing, Tim was sure he was trying not to throw up. He knew Tony well and while he would fuss over a paper cut he would deflect the team when he had a serious injury.

 

“Tony, I need you to tell me exactly where your injured, I can pretty much guess you have a concussion and your nose may be broken, what else hurts, this isn’t the time to be the tough guy, if we are going to help you we need to know.”

 

“Yeah, concussion, nose, maybe some bruised or broken ribs, left shoulder, chest and stomach hurt from the seat belt and I’m not sure what else.”

 

“Tony, do you have anything in the car we can use, a first aide kit, flares.” Tim asked.

 

“I have, I have a first aide kit, some blankets one of those portable chargers with lights, had flares but used them a couple of weeks ago when I got a flat.”

 

“Ok, I’m going to get out and get a look around the car, see if I can get your door open. Abby, give me the keys,” Tim reached out his hand.

 

Abby bend over but did not see a key; the car had a start button. “Tony, we need your keys are they in your pocket.”

 

Not wanting to nod his head, Tony lifted his arm, sliding his hand into his pocket, he tried to pull the keys out but the movement was too much. Abby placed her hand on his shoulder, “It’s Ok Tony I’ll get them.” Reaching into his pocket she felt for the keys, pulling them out she handed them to Tim.

 

The passenger door opened without difficulty as most of the damage to the car was in the front and drivers side. Looking around Tim could see where the car had slid off the road. They were about 20 feet down the embankment, while not overly steep, the snow cover made it slippery. Working his way to the front of the car he could see were the deer had impacted, pieces of fur and flesh still imbed in what remained of the front grill and hood. The windshield looked like a large spider web with cracks running in all directions but the safety glass held together unlike the shattered side windows. Without having to go all the way around, he could see that the drivers side door was pushed up against a large tree, there was no way to get Tony out that way.

 

Tim stood contemplating the situation, turning when he heard Abby attempting to get out the car, opening the door, Tim squatted next to her. “Before you get up, Abby, let me make sure you are Ok.”

 

“I’m fine, Timmy, just wondering how we are going to get Tony out?”

 

“I’m not sure Abby, but we’ll figure it out.” Taking Abby into his arms he held her gently.

 

“Hey guys, enough cuddling, I’m still here,” Tony called out.

 

Breaking apart, Tim leaned into the car, “Well, we are stuck, cars wedged against a tree on your side and no cell reception so for now we are on our own. Hopefully someone will see the remains of the deer on the road and stop to investigate.”

 

“You need to get me out of this car, I’m not going to spend hours stuck like this.”

 

“Tony, you could have serious injuries, it might be better for you to stay there until we can get help.”

 

“Tim, I’ll freeze to death first, plus I think my leg is bleeding and I could bleed to death before you get help.” To illustrate his point he carefully reached down between the door and his leg and pulled up a bloody hand.

 

“Crap Tony, why didn’t you say something earlier.”

 

“Didn’t feel it at first, just started to hurt.”

 

“Ok, Ok, we’ll figure it out.” Tim tried to sound confident, it would be up to him now to keep Abby calm and help Tony.

 

“First aid kit in the trunk and snack bars in my go-bag.” Tony told Tim.

 

While Tim checked out the trunk, Abby having had experience in pulling cars apart crawled into the backseat and worked her way over to Tony. She was scared but having something to focus on help keep her nerves in check.

 

“I think I know how we can get you out Tony.”

 

“How Abbs?”

 

“Well it’s going to take a little maneuvering and it may hurt a little but I think we can do it. If we can get the steering wheel up as far as it will go and drop the back of the seat so it is as flat as we can get it, Tim and I can pull you back until we can clear your legs from under the dash. I’m sorry Tony but it may hurt, and I would hate to hurt you, don’t want to see you in pain.” She started to ramble.

 

“Abbs, Abbs,” Tony said to get her attention. ”Abbs, better a little pain then being stuck here all night.”

 

Tim stuck his head back in the car, “Boy, Tony, never expected you to be prepared, that’s a nice first aid kit, and you have some blankets plus the portable charger has lights.”

 

“Tim, I know how we can get Tony out, see if you can reach in reach the steering wheel adjuster, pull it up as far up as it will go.”

 

Tim following directions got into the front seat, reaching over into the drivers side, he was able to release the adjuster, unfortunately it was under the steering column and he found his hands a little to close to Tony’s crotch for comfort.

 

“No copping a feel, while you are there McLoverboy or you’ll have to answer to Gibbs,” Tony joked.

 

“Don’t worry Tony, I don’t think you’re my type,” Tim joked back.

 

Once that steering wheel was up, Tim looked back at Abby, “Ok what’s next?”

 

“Tony is the seat all the way back?”

 

“Abby, what do you think, where would I place these long legs.”

 

“OK, I’m going to recline your seat all the way down, then Tim and I are going to help you slide back, we should be able to pull back far enough to get you out,” patting his shoulder, “Ready.”

 

Nodding, “Yes, lets get the show on the road.”

 

While not as easy at it had sounded, Abby’s plan worked and in less then ten minutes they had Tony free and sitting in the backseat with his long legs out the door. The deep gash on the side of his left thigh that was bleeding freely but with bandages from the first aid kit; they had the bleeding under control quickly. Abby also bandaged the wound on the side of his head and wiped the blood off his face.

 

“That’s the best I can do for now,” Abby said, “but your going to have some impressive raccoon eyes, your nose and eyes are starting to swell. Are you having any trouble seeing?”

 

“I can see well enough to see you’ll have a matching set.”

 

“Oh Shit! To bad it’s not Halloween we could have dressed up as the Walking Dead.” She giggled as pictured them out as zombies.

 

Leaving Tony and Abby covered with blankets in the car, discussing their favorite zombie movies, Tim made his way to the road and took a look around. There was little trace of their accident, the impact had thrown the deer carcass to side of the road. Accidents involving deer were so frequent in this area, no one driving by would think to stop just for a dead deer and the heavy falling snow had already concealed the skid marks where the car had gone off.

 

Standing in the middle of the road, Tony’s white car was completely invisible, even the emergency flashers would not be seen unless someone was right at the edge of the drop off. He could only hope that with nightfall the snow would stop and the flashers would be more visible in the dark as they reflected on the snow covered ground and trees. Taking another careful look around, Tim saw that not far from the car was what appeared to be a shed.

 

Working his way back to Tony and Abby, he reported his findings and headed out to investigate.

 

The shed was only about 25 feet from the car, but hidden by the snow and some brush, making it difficult to see from the car, the higher elevation of the roadway had made it easier to spot.

 

The 8x 10 shed was not locked and in looking around Tim understood why as there was nothing worth stealing. The shed was stacked with hay but there was plenty of room for the three of them. The shed seemed well built and would keep the wind out. Tim carefully stacked the bales from the center along the walls to provide insulation, leaving some of the bales of hay to make a platform for Tony to lie down on and seating for himself and Abby. Getting settled in the shed did not take long even with Tony’s grumbling that they would all end up covered in fleas or lice or something from all the bugs in the hay.

 

Tim and Abby made sure to leave a clear trail of packed snow for rescuers to follow. Knowing they would have to go out every half hour or so to trample down the new snowfall. To save the car’s battery, Tim would go back and turn on the flashes when it got dark, if they had not been rescued yet.

 

Night arrived early as days were short this time of the year and the darkened skies had quickened the nightfall. With no streetlights or electricity in the shed, they were thankful Tony had several flashlights in the car, and even more thankful that he had a portable power pack, with the light from this they did not have to sit in the dark.

 

Once settled, the three wondered how long it would take to be rescued.

 

“Gibbs expected us back by now, I’m sure he’ll come looking for us in no time,” Tony said.

 

“I hope so Tony, I really don’t want to be here all night.”

 

“Don’t worry Abby, we will be home to open gifts in the morning,” Tony assured her. Turning to his other friend he asked, “Hey, Tim how was the tree, did it get damaged?”

 

“How can you think of the tree, Tony?”

 

“Well, we spent a lot of time looking for it and when we get out of here it will still be Christmas, we will need our tree.”

 

“That’s pretty optimistic of you, Tony,” Tim wondered if Tony had gotten hit harder on the head then they thought, looking his friend over Tim figured that even if they did get rescued, the only place Tony would be spending Christmas was in the hospital. Not wanting to upset Tony and Abby he kept this to himself.

 

“Timmy, Gibbs will use his special Gibbs power and find us, all we have to do is sit back and wait,” Abby jumped in, her Silver Fox would never let her down. He would find them.

 

“You have a lot of faith in him don’t you?”

 

“Timmy,” Abby squeaked, “You can’t question the power of ‘The Gibbs’, has he ever let us down?”

 

“Well, no Abby but its dark out now, there isn’t much traffic on this road, Tony’s car is white and covered in snow. The flashers are hard to see, I just want to be prepared to survive if it takes awhile to find us.”

 

“Oh Timmy,” Abby said grabbing his arm and leaning her head on his shoulder, “don’t worry we will be home before Christmas, I can just feel it.”

 

Tony interrupted the moment with a motion for them to be quiet. “Hey, I hear something outside,” he said, pointing toward the shed door.

 

The three listened as a there was a scratching sound outside. Tony sat up and swung his legs to the floor, the movement caused him to moan in pain. Tim signaled for him to stay were he was. Drawing their weapons, Tony stayed leaning against the hay and watched as Tim slowly opened the door. To their surprise they were greeted by a scruffy dog, “What the heck is that?” Tim yelped as he jumped back.

 

The trio watched as the dog stood in the doorway, glancing at the humans in the room, turning to look at the dark snowy woods behind and then back at the warmer interior of the shed, with a whimper the dog stepped in out of the cold.

 

Abby was the first to react, breaking off a piece of the snack bar she was eating she knelt down and offered it to the dog. After sniffing Abby’s hand, the dog took the offered treat.

 

“Abby, do you think that’s smart, the dog could be sick?” Tony cautioned.

 

“Tony’s right Abby, what if that dog has rabies or something?” Tim added moving as far away from the dog as the small shed allowed.

 

“Look, it’s a she,” Abby said pointing to the dog’s belly, “I think she’s pregnant.”

 

Tony and Tim glanced at each other; Tim shrugged his shoulder but proceeded to shut the door to the shed. Tony struggled to get his leg back up on the bail of hay he was using as a bed, out of reach of the dog’s teeth.

 

Abby sat on the ground with the dog. Carefully feeling the dog’s neck, she found a collar. Checking the tags, “Aha, see Guys, she has tags, it says her name is Bella, and this one says her rabies vaccine is up to date. Poor baby, you must be cold.” Abby continued talking to the dog.

 

With nothing to do but wait, Tony closed his eyes and let sleep take him. Tim was concerned about his friend but nothing that they could do now, Abby seemed content taking care of the dog.


	2. Part 2

_Chapter 2_

Gibbs looked out his window at the falling snow; it was now 4:00pm. Tony, Abby and Tim had gone to get a Christmas tree this afternoon and should be back by now. They planned on getting the tree up and having dinner about 7:30. Tony had a roast that needed to be in the oven by now. Gibbs tried to relax; maybe with the snow and traffic they got delayed, if only his famous Gibbs Gut was not screaming that something had happened. He tried to call them, initially not worried when he couldn’t reach them as cell phone reception in that area was shoddy at best and the storm would have made it worse.

 

“Jethro, would you like me to phone Eleanor and inform them that dinner tonight will be postponed?”

 

“I don’t know Duck, even with the snow they should have been back by now.” Not able to stand it any longer, he picked up his phone and called Leon Vance. Vance had worked with Gibbs long enough and knew not to ignore the experienced Agent’s gut feelings. Making a few quick calls to NCIS, Vance had the cell phones tracked.

 

Gibbs waited anxiously for Leon to call back, grabbing the phone on the first ring. “Gibbs, can’t locate their cell signals, last time they were used was in Clifton, VA about 2:45pm. Does the car they were driving have a tracker?"

 

“No, they have Tony’s car and this one does not have all that fancy stuff. I’m going to go out and look for them Leon.”

 

“Gibbs, I have Agent Velasquez on the way to your house now with a four wheel drive SUV, it will make traveling easier and if you find them, they won’t all fit in your pickup.”

 

“Ok, I’ll plot a route to that tree farm they were going to, can you notify the Fairfax County Police to keep a look out.”

 

“Gibbs, keep me posted, I’ll call the LEO’s and let them know we have people missing.”

 

“Sure Leon.” Gibbs said as he hung up, he called out, “Ducky, call Ellie, let her know what is going on,” as he heading up stairs to dress for the cold.

 

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_Chapter 3_

Tim looked at his watch; it was only 5:30pm, only three and half hours since they had been in the accident but it felt like they had been here all night. The shed was cold but it was warmer than a car with broken windows. Checking on Tony, he was happy to see that the wound on his head and leg had not started to bleed again, there was nothing they could do for the concussion but keep him quiet and warm. Abby had been right, Tony already had two impressive black eyes and the left one was nearly swollen shut.

 

Abby had dosed off with the dogs on head on her lap. They had tried to guess the dogs breed, she was about 50lbs and looked like an Australian Shepherd mix covered in a long gray/black colored coat, but unlike most Australian Shepherds, Abby saw this dog had a long tail.

 

The dog had been lying quietly with her head on Abby’s lap when she let out a low groan and curled around herself to lick her own genitals. Getting up she walked around in a circle, with Tim’s help they had spread hay on the floor earlier, now Bella was scratching at the hay. “Abby what’s she doing?” Tim asked as he watched the dog with concern. “Do you think she has to go to the bathroom?”

 

“Timmy, I don’t think she has to go or she would go to the door.” Having worked with her brother at the Pet Store, Abby had been present when several cat’s had kittens, the dogs behavior reminded her of the mother cats in labor.

 

Standing she grabbed the dogs tail and held it up, after a quick exam she noticed that the vagina seemed to be dilating. Grabbing a medical glove from the kit, she felt the area as Tim looked on in horror. “Abby what are you doing?”

 

“Tim, I think the puppies are coming.”

 

“Now!!!”

 

“Well, I’m not sure exactly when, but I would guess it will be tonight.”

 

“Puppies, who’s having puppies,” Tony said in a very sleepy voice, “We, can’t have puppies, we don’t have a dog.”

 

Giving Tim a concerned look, Abby answered as she stood to check on her friend. Looking into his eyes his pupils looked even, but he did not seem fully awake. “Tony do you know were we are?”

 

“Shed.”

 

“Do you know what happened?”

 

“Deer, hit a deer?”

 

“That’s right Tony, we hit a deer.”

 

“Oh, Gibbs is going to kill me, I was going to make a roast,” rolling over to try to get up, “I have to get home, I have to cook.”

 

“Tony, lay down, we aren’t going anywhere until they find us.”

 

“Right, Gibbs will come, he’ll find us,” Tony said as he drifted back to sleep.

 

“Abby, that was weird, you don’t think the head injury is worse do you?”

 

“I’m not sure Tim, he was a little confused, but I think he was more asleep than awake, at least I hope he was.” Taking the blanket she tucked it tighter around her sleeping friend.

 

“Abby, look at the dog,” Tim yelled out.

 

Abby turned quickly to find the dog squatting as the bulge of a puppy in its sack protruded from her vagina.

 

Getting excited Abby exclaimed, “Yeah, we are going to have puppies.”

 

“Abby, what do we do?” Tim asked, thinking this could not be happening.

 

“Nothing Tim, that is as long as she is all right. You know birth is a natural process, we just sit and watch, oh this is so exciting.”

 

“But, but she can’t just have them here?”

 

“Tim of course she can, why do you think she came in here in the first place, she wanted to get out of the snow. Oh Tim, its Christmas Eve, and this is like a manger with the hay, we can’t send her out in the cold.”

 

Getting on her knees, Abby kept watch of the progress, in a matter of minutes the puppy plopped on the ground, Bella turned and started to lick and bite the bag covering her puppy, within a short period of time she had the puppy free and was cleaning her baby. About 15 minutes later she repeated the process and birthed her second pup.

 

“Abby, how many puppies can she have?” Tim questioned looking perplexed, as 5 small puppies had now come out of their mother.

 

“Don’t know Tim, varies, some dogs only have 5 or 6 puppies but some can have more then 10 puppies, we just have to wait and see.”

 

About half an hour later Tim woke Tony, this time Tony seemed less confused. Tim wanted him to drink some water and eat a little of the power bar.

 

Sitting up with Tim’s help Tony, got first glimpse of the puppies. “Wow, what happened when I went to sleep there was only one dog, where did all those puppies come from?” he said giving Tim and Abby a questioning look.

 

“Bella had puppies,” Abby responded from position on the floor.

 

“Bella?” Tony gave Tim an inquiring look.

 

“Abby found a collar on the dog, her name is Bella and I guess she came in here to have her puppies out of the snow.”

 

“Oh,” was the only response Tony could think of, “How many puppies?”

 

“She had 5 but she could still have more,” Abby said as she pet the dog. “Sometimes there can be hours between puppies but I think this maybe it. I felt her belly and I don’t feel anymore.”

 

“What time is it Tim? Gibbs must be out looking for us now,” Tony asked.

 

“It’s about 6:15,” Seeing the disappointment in his friends face, he added, “Tony, I’m sure Gibbs is out looking for us, but its very dark out, it’s been snowing, they may not find us till morning.”

 

“I know Tim, it’s just that this is the first Christmas since Gibbs and I have lived together, with that last case I didn’t think we would really be able to celebrate, so when he agreed to have everyone over, well I was really looking forward to a real Christmas.”

 

“Oh, Tony, I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t have dragged you all the way out here for a tree, if we had not come out this way, we wouldn’t have been in the accident,” Abby said.

 

“Abby, it’s not your fault, I wanted a real tree too and we found a great one, plus like you said it was an accident, people hit deer all the time, it isn’t your fault.”

 

Standing Abby went over to hug Tony. As she wrapped him in her arms, the sound of a siren caused them to jump. Tim moved quickly and opened the door to step outside, shining the flashlight toward the roadway, he saw the flashing lights of a cruiser, an officer was standing on the roadway, looking down at Tony’s car, the snow seemed to have let up and the flashers could now be seen from the road, reflecting on the snow.

 

“Hey, Help down here!” Tim yelled as loud as he could, while he waved his light.

 

“Do you need medial attention?” The officer called down.

 

“My friend was hurt in the cash, we took shelter in the shed,” Tim yelled back up.

 

“Ok, stay down there, I’m calling for assistance, shouldn’t be long,” the officer called back, as he went back to his cruiser.

 

After a call for the fire department and an ambulance, the Officer grabbed some items from his trunk and worked his way down to the shed, passing the car on the way, the white car was almost invisible at this point except for the emergency flashers.

 

Reaching the shed the Officer entered, to his surprise he was greeted by the bark of a dog and squeaking of newborn puppies. “Oh, you guys have been busy, I’m Officer Connors, we’ve been looking for you, got a call from Director Vance letting us know you three, never made it home. Well help is coming, so who needs medical help?”

 

The young woman who was sitting on the floor with the dog and the young man who had greeted him outside, both pointed to a very pale looking man sitting up on a bed of hay, while the other two seemed OK from the quick assessment he did as he watched them move, his attention turned to the obviously injured man. Setting up the box he brought in with him, he pulled several bottles of water and some emergency blankets, they were thin and compact, when opened it looked like a big sheet of foil but they held body heat. Even thought the shed was warmer than outside it was still cold in the small building. Abby and Tim gladly accepted the extra layer of warmth. They had used the blankets from Tony’s car to keep him warm.

 

Working his way to Tony, he said, “I’m a trained first responder, so I’m just going to check you over Ok.” Draping a blanket over the one Tony already had he noted the way Tony was careful not to move his head much. “Have a headache?”

 

“Yeah, you could say that.” Tony said.

 

“Ok let’s see what else we have.” With skill, the young officer carefully assessed Tony, noting the gash on his leg. Without disturbing the bandage that was on, he carefully wrapped it in a thicker layer of gauze. Then he cleaned the side of Tony’s face of some of the dried blood Abby had missed and added another layer of gauze to the head wound. When he was done, he said, “I want you to just lay back and relax, the fire department will be here soon and they will get you out of here.”

 


	3. Part 3

**_Chapter 4_ **

 

 Gibbs had been driving through the back roads of Clifton, VA for a couple of hours looking for Tony, Abby and Tim. The area had been kept rural on purpose, with the roads little more then winding country lanes, the lack of street lights made driving at night even in good weather, dangerous. Gibbs was glad the snow had finally stopped falling but with the darkness and several inches of new snow, it would be impossible to find the car if it had gone off the side of the road.

 

 The ring of a cell phone brought him back, listening in to Agent Joaquín Velazquez’s conversation as he drove, it was clear that the team had been found, not able to sit patiently he grabbed the phone out of the stunned man’s hand.

 

 “What did you find?” Gibbs barked.

 

“Agent Velazquez?” the voice on the other side of the phone asked.

 

 “No this is Agent Gibbs, what did you find?” he asked impatiently.

 

 “Agent Gibb’s this is Sergeant Morris of the Fairfax County Police Dept, we found your missing team?”

 Gibbs felt heart stop beating for a moment as he briefly thought of the worst-case scenario; no they had to be OK. “Are they OK?”

 

“A bit banged up and cold but they should be alright, I have an officer with them and EMS is on the way?”

 

“Give me their location and we’ll meet them there.”

     

                  _NCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS_

The flashing lights of the police and fire department made finding the crash site easy. As Gibbs jumped from the SUV, he saw Tim and Abby huddled together by the fire truck.

 

 “Where’s Tony?” he yelled without any greetings.

 

“There bringing him up now boss,” Tim answered, seeing the worry in his Bosses face, he continued, “A little banged up, concussion, but he should be ok.”

 

 Gibbs walked away while Tim was explaining what caused the accident, looking at the direction Gibbs was headed, Tim noticed that the fire dept, had cleared the top of the embankment with Tony in tow, in a stokes stretcher. Tony had been reluctant to be carried up the hill but Officer Connor was pretty persuasive, plus his leg was now so painful, he knew he would not be able to walk up the hill and he was dizzy from the concussion.

 

Gibbs reached his lover as he was being placed on the waiting wheeled stretcher. Not caring who was around to witness, he grabbed Tony’s hand with a gentleness not normally associated with the gruff man.

 

“You Ok?” he asked, taking in his partners pallor, even with the flashing red lights of the emergency vehicles he could see how pale Tony was. Holding on tight to Tony’s hand he used his free hand to softly touch his partners face. His missed nothing: the fine lines that indicated his partner was in pain, the bandage on his head, the dried blood in his hair and looking down he could see the larger bandage wrapped around the left thigh.

 

Glancing back at Tony’s face their eyes met and through years of practice they communicated all that was important without speaking a word. Tony knew Gibbs was worried and Gibbs knew Tony would be all right, Tony also knew that any chance he had of refusing a ride to the hospital was over. The moment was broken as EMS started to move the stretcher back to the waiting ambulance, the wide open doors and brightly lit interior promised a warm ride to the hospital.

 

As they settled the stretcher, Gibbs looked back at Tim and Abby.

 

“You two alright?” With his concern for Tony, he had not asked earlier.

 

“Yeah, Gibbs just some bruises, but Tony took the brunt of the impact.”

 

“He, always does,” Gibbs muttered under his breath.

 

Officer Connor and Agent Velazquez walked up to the group.

 

“I can take Agent McGee and Ms Sciuto to the hospital to get check out, I assume you will be ridding Agent DiNozzo.” Agent Velazquez said as he addressed the group.

 

“That works,” Gibbs said as he turned and boarded the vehicle.

 

Watching the ambulance leave with their boss and friend, Abby looked at Officer Connor, “What’s going to happen to Bella and her puppies?”

 

Smiling Officer Connor responded, “Oh they’ll be fine, the property the shed is on belongs to a local farmer, he runs sheep in this area in the spring. Bella is his dog, don’t worry Bella and the puppies have been carefully gathered and we’ll get them home.”

 

“Can I say good-bye?” Abby asked, wanting to see for herself that the puppies were OK.

 

“Sure, they are warming up in the cruiser.”

 

Opening the back door to the police car, Abby looked in, Bella and her puppies were on the seat wrapped in a blanket, leaning in she petted the mother dog and placed a kiss on her head. “Take care of your babies,” she whispered.

 

Standing up she glanced at Tim, “Don’t you want to say good-bye?” She said in that voice that meant even if you don’t, you will because I asked you.

 

Knowing that easiest way out of this was to just say good-bye to the dog, he reached in and rubbed the dog’s head, backing out quickly.

 

Leaning into Tim as they walked to the NCIS vehicle, Abby looked back trying to get a glimpse of the damaged car. “Oh, Tim,” she sighed, “all of this and we go home with nothing, picking the perfect tree for nothing.”

 

Agent Velazquez and Officer Connor looked at each other and nodded in agreement on hearing the sorrow in young forensic scientists voice.

 

 

 

**_Chapter 5_ **

 

It was amazing how many people could be in need of medical care on Christmas Eve, the waiting area at Fairfax County Hospital was full, fortunately for Tony, coming by ambulance and injured in a motor vehicle accident, triggered an “activated trauma”. On arrival, Tony was rushed back to the designated trauma unit. The medical team stood ready and waiting, as the paramedics had called ahead.

 

Gibbs followed Tony into the exam room, a young nurse stopped him, “I’m sorry Sir you have to wait outside, we need room to work. Someone will come get you and let you know how he is doing.”

 

Glaring at the young woman and flashing his badge, “I’m staying,” Gibbs, said in low, quiet tone, looking her in the eye, as he stood straight, legs slightly spread, looking every bit like the immovable object that he was. The young nurse while used to working with distraught families, was clearly intimidated by sheer power Gibbs emitted.

 

Tony, alert enough to notice muttered, “Please, I want him to stay.”

 

The doctor leading the medical team looked over at his nurse and Gibbs, “Kyrie, he can stay,” directing his next comment to Gibbs with an impressive glare of his own that left no room for arguments, “Just stay out of our way or I’ll have you removed.”

 

Backing up against the wall Gibbs watched as the skilled team of doctors and nurses, removed Tony’s bloody clothing, connected him to the monitors and inserted an IV. What looked like chaos was really a well-choreographed dance. Each member of the medical team doing their part, after the wounds were carefully examined, x-rays were taken of his ribs and shoulder without having to leave the trauma room, though Gibbs acquiesced and stepped out when the x-ray machine was in use.

 

As the activity slowed down, Dr. Patel, explained the findings, “Ok Mr. DiNozzo…”

 

“It’s Agent DiNozzo,” Gibbs interrupted.

 

“Doc, just call me Tony,” the injured young man interjected.

 

“Tony, we are going to get a CAT Scan of your head, the paramedics report you had a loss of consciousness following the accident, your pupil response are indicative of a concussion, we need to rule out a more serious injury.”

 

“Kind of figured I had a concussion, not my first.”

 

“All the more reason for the CAT Scan and I will want you to follow up with a neurologist outpatient _,_ I’m sure you are aware of the long-term consequences of multiple concussions. As to your other injuries, we will need to careful clean and stitch the wound on your head and leg. The leg injury is fairly large and the edges are pretty ragged, but I think I can get it cleaned up and closed here in the ED. Are you worried about a scar?”

 

“No, just adds to the collection I have.”

“Ok, but if you are, I can have a plastic surgeon close the wound, but they would want to do it in the OR as they would need to enlarge the wound to get clean edges.”

 

“If doing it here means I get to go home tonight, then just do it.”

 

“OK, but about that, the CAT scan results will determine if you can go home tonight, if we find something more serious than a simple concussion, you’ll have to stay.”

 

Tony closed his eyes as he listened and reached out to grab Gibbs hand, right now he needed his partners touch to ground him.

 

Dr. Patel smiled as he watched the interaction between the two men, clearly they were more than work “partners”.   Years of working in the busy emergency department had helped him move past any homophobic feeling he may have had as a younger man. He had seen the depth of love and commitment between the same-sex couples he treated in the ED. The pain of loss was just as deep as for any other couple. Working with tragedy and death on a daily bases, he did not begurdge anyone finding love.

 

“Now for the results of the x-rays, you didn’t break any bones, but the airbag did hit you hard, you’ll be sporting impressive black eyes for a couple of weeks. You also have contusions on your chest and abdominal area from the seat belt but no internal bleeding. I’m sure by tomorrow, even sitting up in bed by yourself is going to be agony. Your shoulder has soft tissue damage, for now ice, rest and prescription strength anti-inflammitory is the only treatment, but if it continues to hurt after a week, follow up with an othropedist as you may need an MRI to rule out a torn rotator cuff. After the CAT scan, I can close the these wounds and once we have the results you can go home or stay as our guest depending on the findings.”  


After a trip to the CAT Scan, Dr. Patel carefully cleaned the wounds. The head wound, closed with 5 staples without the need to shave Tony’s hair. The wound on his upper thigh was a bit more complicated; the gash was about six inch long, the edges ragged, Dr. Patel trimmed the edges and used 30 well placed stitches to close the wound. Tony thankfully did not feet any pain, except for the initial injections of lidocaine. Through the procedure Tony never let go of Gibbs hand.

 

With the wounds taken care of, Tony found himself alone with Gibbs while Dr. Patel left to check the results of the CAT Scan.

Sitting on a stool by the bed, Gibbs continued to hold his lover’s hand. “Had me a little worried tonight.”

 

“I sorry Jethro, God what a fuck up this turned out to be.”

 

Reaching out he cupped Tony’s handsome face with his thumb he gently touched the emerging bruises, “Hey, nothing to be sorry about, I’m just glad your OK, it was an accident, damn buck ran out in front of you, there was nothing you could do, I’m just glad that you weren’t hurt worse.”

 

“What about Christmas?”

 

“Tony I haven’t done anything special for Christmas in a long time and having you home is gift enough for me.” gently kissing the back of his lover’s hand.

 

“I wanted our first Christmas to be special, Oh Jethro that tree would have looked perfect, Abby was a little crazy picking one, but it really was nice.”

 

“Listen Tony, it’s still Christmas Eve, nothing is ruined the team is still coming over tomorrow. It’s like that Dr. Seuss cartoon you like, the one with that green monster and his dog.”

 

“You, mean _How the Grinch Stole Christmas_?”

 

“That’s the one, well isn’t the premise of that story that Christmas is about the people not about the stuff.”

 

“Your right, guess we still have time to pull it off.”

 

“You aren’t going to pull anything off. Your going home to bed and tomorrow, the team will help make it a really nice day for everyone.”

 

With a quick knock on the door, Dr. Patel entered the room, “Well, Agent DiNozzo, I think we can let you go home tonight,” the Doctor told the anxious patient and his companion.

 

Following the doctor, the young nurse came in the room and reviewed the discharge papers and gave Tony a bottle of antibiotics and Percocet from the hospital pharmacy.

 

Tony felt the tension leave his body. The last thing he wanted was to spend Christmas in the hospital.

Opening his eyes and sitting up with Gibbs help, the nurse continued uninterrupted with the well-practiced speech, “….the leg wound, you can put weight on that leg, but walking should be limited to trips to the bathroom and back, no running or strenuous activity. The staples in your head can come out in about a week but the ones in your leg should wait 14 days to be removed. Keep the stitches dry when you shower; you can wash your hair but need to wait 48 hours, just be quick and gentle. Any questions?”

 

“No,” Gibbs answered for both of them, he was just wanted to get Tony home.

 

“OK then, Merry Christmas,” The doctor stated as he turned and walked out.

 

Handing the paper work to Gibbs, the young nurse, “I’ll be right back with a wheelchair.”

 

Tony’s preprogrammed reaction was to reject the use of the chair but one look a Gibbs and he just grinned.

 

By 11:30pm they were headed back to Gibbs house. Gibbs driving as he had commandeered the driver’s seat from Agent Velasquez, Tony sitting next to him, the pain medication he received in the hospital made the ride bearable.

 

Tim, Abby and Agent Velasquez were squeezed in the backseat, Tim escaped the accident with only minor bruising; Abby was sporting a sling on her right arm as she had injured her shoulder when the seat belt abruptly stopped her momentum. Like Tony, she had also been hit in the face with the airbag, neither suffered broken noses but the exploding airbag had left them both looking like raccoons.

 

The snow had stopped falling; the normally busy streets were quiet and had that magical look that only comes on a snowy winter night. The tiny snow flakes sparkled like jewels in the head lights and the houses they passed were decorated with soft white candles in each window, multicolored flashing lights, lit wire reindeer and the oversize inflatable Santa’s.  

 

With Silent Night playing on the radio, Tony passed each house with increasing sadness. Instead of driving home from the hospital they should be home, surrounded by friends, the beautifully decorated tree the focal point of the room. The glow of a fire adding warmth on this cold night, he had planned to cook, something he’d rarely done when he lived alone. Tony felt the weight of a hand softly placed on his arm, taking his right hand, he reached over and as fingers met and intertwined he felt the strength and love of the quiet, stoic man he had given his heart fully and completely to, closing his eyes he let the beauty of the song push some of the sorrow away.

 


	4. Part 4

_Chapter 6_

 

Pulling up to the house, Gibbs noted that the inside lights were off, only the front porch light illuminate the way. Glancing over at Tony he saw the disappointment in the younger man’s eyes, their first Christmas together was not as they had planned, the tree picked with love, was now lost, the clock counting down the last minutes of Christmas Eve.

 

Giving Tony a little smile Gibbs opened his door and went around to help his partner/lover out. Agent Velazquez came around the car, Gibbs handed him the keys. Gibbs shaking the young agents hand, “Thanks for your help.”

 

“No worries Agent Gibbs, I was already scheduled to work tonight, and my family is in Texas.” The Mexican-American agent responded. “I’ll make sure these two get home safe.” On the ride from the hospital to Gibbs house, it has been decided that Tim and Abby would go stay at Abby’s house and come back about noon to help get Christmas dinner ready, Abby had wanted to stay as originally planned but with the accident, Gibbs wanted to make sure they were all able to get some rest. If the team stayed over, he knew that would be impossible. Abby finally conceded when Tim not so subtly poked her in the side.

 

Gently taking Tony’s right arm as the SUV pulled away, Gibbs guided his lover up the front steps. Opening the door he flipped the light switch, as the room was bathed in light, Gibbs heard a gasp as Tony came to stand beside him.

 

The room was filled with the wonderful aroma of roasted beef but they barely noticed as they stared at the beautifully decorated Christmas tree, Gibbs saw disappointment replaced with joy on Tony’s face.

 

“Oh my God, how, who did this…how?” Tony stumbled over his words in excitement.

 

“I have no idea,” Gibbs answered looking at the festively decorated room. The dinning room and kitchen lights were out, but Gibbs could see that the dinning room table was set, looking around at the empty room he was surprised that the elderly Medical Examiner had not waited up. Ducky usually wanted to check for himself that the emergency room doctors did not miss anything.

 

Leading Tony to the sofa, he made sure the younger man was comfortable before he went over to inspect the tree. Sitting on a branch were it could not be missed was an envelope addressed to them.

 

From his position on the sofa, Tony carefully looked over the tree, “Jethro, I think this is our tree, the one we picked out today,” he was pretty sure he had seen this tree before, “How the hell did it get here and how did Ducky get this all done?”

 

Coming back and sitting next to Tony, Gibbs waved the envelope in his hand, “I have no idea, I was out looking for you all evening and then at the hospital, maybe this will tell us.” Ripping open the envelope he pulled a letter written in a beautiful flowing script that they both recognized as Ducky’s handwriting.

 

  

 

_Dear Anthony and Jethro,_

_A very Merry Christmas to the both of you. Anthony I will expect a full report on your injuries in the morning and I expect that you will be taking your medications as ordered and adhering to the Doctors treatment plan._

_I am sure that you are both wondering how this beautiful tree found it’s way into your home. Surrounded all year long with the horror man can instill on his fellow man; it is refreshing to see that all the goodness is not gone from the world. I will relay the tale of this beautiful tree and how it came to be over breakfast in the morning._

_Now I would like for both of you to get something to eat. There are two plates of roast beef in the refrigerator and I expect Anthony to be in bed right after he eats._

_Merry Christmas my dear friends._

_Fondly yours,_

_Ducky_

 Placing a gentle kiss on Tony’s cheek, Gibbs stood, “I’ll go heat some food, are you up to eating.” Gibbs knew from experience that with a concussion, food did not always sit well, but Tony had not had a lot to eat except energy bars since breakfast yesterday and he had refused food at the hospital.

 

“Just heat one plate, I’ll pick off of yours, not sure I can eat that much and sleep well.”

 

After eating, Gibbs returned the plate to the kitchen, “Ok, Tony lets get up to bed.”

 

“Not yet, Jethro, sit with me.”

 

Sitting together on sofa, Tony leaned into Gibbs, a protective arm wrapped around him and a warm kiss was pressed to the side of his head.

 

“I love you Jethro.”

 

“Love you too, Tony.”

 

“You know Jethro, this may not be how I envisioned our first Christmas but right now it feels really good.” Sighing, he snuggled in as close as his battered body allowed.

 

Ducky quietly crept back to his room with a smile on his face, his friends were safe and who knew, that these two men would find in each other, what had evaded them for so long. It had been hard for some of the agents at NCIS to accept the relationship, but he had lived long enough to see that Love is a rare gift that comes in many forms. These two were now ready to receive and nurture this gift. Tomorrow he would examine is young friend’s injuries. Tomorrow he would tell the tale of the Christmas tree. Tonight he would leave them to share the magic of the night alone.

 


	5. Part 5

_Chapter 7_

 

Gibbs woke at about 7 am, too many of years of early rising, made sleeping in difficult. Careful not to wake Tony, he dressed and went to make coffee. At the bottom of the stairs he stopped and looked at the tree, he wasn’t sure how this had happened or who he should thank, but he owed someone big, filling his cup he headed to the basement. He had a gift to complete.

 

Once Tony woke, he was given a look over by Ducky, and comfortably settled on the couch with a coffee and plate of scrambled eggs with cream cheese. Tony and Gibbs, both anxious to find out how the tree ended up in their home, pushed Ducky to tell the tale of the Christmas tree. Ducky always glad to share a story did not need much encouragement.

 

“Shortly after you called to inform me that Anthony, Abby and Timothy had been found and that you would be at Hospital with them. I received a telephone call from a delightful young man, an Officer Connors of the Fairfax County Police. He was kind enough to give me an update on Anthony’s condition and asked that I let Anthony know that his vehicle would be recovered this morning and towed to a garage in Burke.”

 

“Did he say where, Ducky,” Tony inquired.

 

“He did not Anthony but he did leave his number and I think if we call him now Officer Connor can also fill in the details of how this marvelous tree found its way home.” Pulling out his cell phone, Ducky dialed the number and put the phone on speaker, while older than Gibbs, the elderly medical examiner had readily embraced some of the new technology that continued to frustrate Gibbs.

 

“Officer Connor’s, this is Dr. Mallard, I am here with Agent Gibbs and Anthony, they are quite interested to hear how the tree made it here.”

 

Tony and Gibbs exchanged a look, wondering what Officer Connor had to do with all of this, as the last time they had seen him had been on the side of a snowy road.

 

“Merry Christmas, Agent Gibbs, Tony. I’m glad to hear you’re home Tony, are you OK?”

 

“Have some healing to do but should be fine in a couple of weeks. Thank you for getting us out of there.”

 

“Glad I was able to help,” Officer Connor proceeded, “ I’m sure you are wondering how the tree got from here to there. Well you see Agent Velazquez and I thought that you already had a pretty awful Christmas Eve and since the tree was not damaged in the accident, we decided to see that it made it home. I had the assistance of Mike and Stephanie; they were part of the rescue team from the fire department. We just figured we could drop the tree off and leave but with Dr. Mallard inviting us in, we all pitched in to decorate, I hope you don’t think we went too far.”

 

Looking at each other Tony and Gibbs shook their heads, taking Gibbs’ hand Tony responded for the both of them, “No, I’m just really touched that you did that for us. We can’t thank you enough.”

 

“Your very welcome, it was our pleasure. Can you let Miss Sciuto know the puppies are all doing well, if any of you are interested Bella’s owner said you could have first dibs.”

 

“Not sure we should tell her that, she will try to get us all to take a puppy,” Tony laughed.

 

The rest of Christmas day filled with laughter and joy, Abby and Tim were as shocked to see the tree as Gibbs and Tony had been. When they arrived Abby had carefully inspected the evergreen. “It’s our tree,” turning to look at Tony and Gibbs, “how did it get here, oh my God it’s a miracle.” She chanted as she hopped around the tree.

 

As Gibbs and Ducky worked in the kitchen, Tony who was restricted to the sofa filled Abby and Tim on the story of the tree. Tim then went to help with the cooking and Abby with her injured shoulder sat in the recliner keeping Tony company. Ellie and Jake came in time for dinner with several homemade pies. Jimmy had called to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, after hearing what had happened, he and Brenna with baby Victory stopped to check on their friends and have coffee and dessert.

 

The team had agreed not to exchange gifts; Tony and Gibbs would wait until everyone had left to exchange their own gifts. The evening wound down early as Ducky watched Tony faded on the sofa, everyone quietly said good-byes to the sound of Tony’s snoring.

Letting Tony sleep, Gibbs went to the basement to bring up gift he had been working on. A fresh cup of coffee in hand, Gibbs watched Tony sleep, one accident almost cost him everything that was important to him, he had lost so much but finding Tony and finally opening his heart, gave him a joy for life he had not experienced since Shannon and Kelly. Once he thought he would be a lonely old man, he had pushed the limit at work, taking too many chances, feeling that dying on the job would be better then the alternative.

 

Leaning over he kissed Tony’s cheek, as Tony’s eyes fluttered open, “You have a good nap.”

 

“Where is everyone?”

 

“They left while you were snoring away.”

 

“Why didn’t you wake me to say good-bye.”?

 

“And risk the wrath of Ducky, I don’t think so.”

 

“Good choice,” Tony chuckled, “Here, help me up I have to pee.”

 

“Ok, then I have something for you.”

 

“Ahem, yours is in the garage, but we can go look after together.”

 

“Not walking that far on that leg, I’ll go look,” Gibbs said with a smile, “plus I might have an idea of what is out there, and I think we will have some fun riding to do this spring.”

 

“Hey,” giving Gibbs an elbow in the ribs, “you haven’t been in the garage in awhile, thought they’d be safe.”

 

“Well, some of the Christmas boxes were out there.”

 

“I thought you said all that stuff was in the attic.”

 

“Most of it was but I forgot I had moved some out there when I cleaned out the guest room, for a certain someone who always seemed to have problems with their boiler. Lets get you back on the sofa and I’ll get your gift.”   


On the way back from the bathroom, Gibbs picked up a plate with apple pie for them to share and a coffee for Tony. Once Tony was seated, Gibbs pulled a box from under the tree.

 

“I’m impressed, you wrapped it.”

 

“Just open it.”

 

Taking his time, Tony unwrapped the package with extreme care.

 

“You know, you could just rip it. Its not like we’re saving the paper.”

 

Gibbs watched as Tony took his time, carefully opening the box he peered inside, lifting the small wood box he glanced up at Gibbs with a huge smile, “You made this?”

 

“Yeah,” Gibbs smiled with a twinkle in his eye.

 

The box was a beautiful tiger maple with Tony’s initials inlayed in the top. When he opened the box, Tony found the inside lined with a green velvet material; there were spaces for several rings, in one of the ring slots was a beautifully hand crafted wood ring, with the box on his lap he pulled out the ring and carefully examined it.

 

“Tony,” Gibbs looked uncharacteristically nervous, his voice almost a whisper, talking the wood ring out of Tony’s hand, he held it, “Tony this is just a place holder, I hope that you will say yes and that we can replace this with a real wedding ring someday.”

 

“Are you asking me, are you?” Tony stuttered out.

 

“I am Tony, I know I’ve done this too many times, but I found something with you that was missing, I want you in my life forever, now that we can legally marry here

and keep all our federal benefits, I want to marry you.”

 

“What about work, we can’t stay on the same team.”

 

“I was thinking of that, as much as I hate to admit it, I will only be allowed to be a field agent for another other year or two, I can’t deny my age and knees are not going to last much longer without knee replacement. If we have a long engagement and it will all work out.”

 

“I can’t think of my life without you. Yes, yes I will marry you, I haven’t wanted anything in my life more, I have loved you for years and I would be proud to be your husband.” Wiping tears from his eyes as he looked at the man he loved.

 

Tony pulled Jethro in, their lips meeting to share a kiss. Sitting together in the warm glow of the fireplace, the lights from the tree flashing, this was the first of many Christmases to come.

 

“Merry Christmas, Jethro.”

 

“Merry Christmas, Tony.”

 

“Jethro?”

 

“Yes, Tony.”

 

“Do you think we could get one of those puppies? They were pretty cute.”

 

Gibbs just looked over his eyebrows raised as his forehead crinkled.

 

“Guess that wasn’t such a good idea with our jobs.”

 

“Ya Think.”

 

 

 

**The End.**

**10/7/2015**

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all for taking the time to read. The best part of writing stories is having a place to share. LAG
> 
> A/N: I thought of this story as I was remembering a near miss with a deer in Clifton, VA. I lived and worked in Northern VA in the late 1980’s. One Christmas Eve I was driving from my sister’s house in Manassas, heading to work in Springfield, it was a very snow night and I frequently cut through Clifton, a huge deer leaped out in front of me, luckily for me, I didn’t hit it or get into an accident, but it sure scared me.


End file.
